Holland

Holland, submersible vessel considered the principal forerunner of the modern submarine, designed by John Holland for the United States Navy and accepted by the Navy in 1900. It was 53 feet (16 metres) long, displaced 74 tons, and was armed with a gun that could fire a 100-pound (45-kilogram) projectile half a mile (about 0.8 kilometre). Its hull was cigar-shaped, and the tanks were flooded for submersion, two features similar to those of modern submarines. The “Holland” had an apparatus that took it to a predetermined depth and another device that kept it level. For surface cruising it was powered by a gasoline engine; this also served to turn a generator to charge the batteries that provided the current for the electric motors used for underwater propulsion. The “Holland” had a surface speed of seven knots (nautical miles per hour).

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...This was to be the Plunger, propelled by steam on the surface and by electricity when submerged. The craft underwent many design changes and finally was abandoned before completion. Holland returned the funds advanced by the navy and built his next submarine (his sixth) at his own expense. This was the Holland, a 53.25-foot craft launched in 1897 and accepted by the navy...

...support from the Irish Fenian Society (who hoped to use submarines against England), he built the Fenian Ram, a small sub that proved a limited success in a test run. In 1895 his J.P. Holland Torpedo Boat Company received a contract from the U.S. Navy to build a submarine, and in 1898 a successful Holland, the first truly practical submarine, was launched. The U.S....